Tom Brown Jr.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to navigation Jump to search

Template:Short description Template:Use mdy dates Template:Infobox person

Thomas Haughey Brown Jr. (January 29, 1950 – August 16, 2024) was an American naturalist, tracker, survivalist, and author from New Jersey, where he ran the Tom Brown Jr. Tracker School.

Early life

Brown was born in Toms River, New Jersey on January 29, 1950.<ref name="nyt" /> From the age of seven, as Brown wrote in his books, he and his childhood friend Rick were trained in tracking and wilderness survival by Rick's grandfather, "Stalking Wolf" (who Brown stated was Lipan Apache).<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Brown wrote that Stalking Wolf died when Brown was 17, and that Rick was killed in an accident in Europe shortly thereafter.<ref>Tom Brown Jr., The Tracker (Penguin Books, 1978,'86) Template:IsbnTemplate:Page needed</ref>

Career

Brown spent the next ten years working odd jobs to support his wilderness adventures. He then set out to find other people in New Jersey who were interested in his experiences. Initially Brown met with little success, but was eventually called on to help locate a crime suspect.<ref name=Vespa>Template:Cite magazine</ref> Though the case won him national attention, he and authorities in the Ramsey, New Jersey area were subsequently sued for 5 million dollars for charging the wrong person.<ref name=Vespa/> Despite this controversy, he was able to build on this exposure to develop a profession as a full-time tracker, advertising his services for locating lost persons, dangerous animals, and fugitives from the law.<ref name=Krautwurst>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> According to People magazine, "He stalks men and animals, mostly in New Jersey."<ref name=Vespa/> The New York Times said that he "was considered the country's foremost authority on wilderness survival".<ref name="nyt" />

The Tracker School

Tom Brown Jr.'s Tracker School is located in the New Jersey Pine Barrens.<ref name="inq">Template:Cite news</ref> Most classes offered by Tracker School are held in Primitive Camp or Joseph Citta Boy Scout Camp, both of which are located near Waretown, New Jersey.<ref>Tracker School Frequently Asked Questions, Tom Brown Jr.'s Tracker School </ref> However, classes are also offered in California and Florida.<ref>Tom Brown Jr.'s Tracker School: Tracking, Nature and Wilderness Survival, AMSER</ref> Workshops involve Brown's versions of Plains Indian ceremonies, including the sweat lodge and vision quest.<ref>The Way of the Sweat Lodge, Tom Brown Jr.'s Tracker School</ref><ref>Power of the Vision Quest, Tom Brown Jr.'s Tracker School</ref>

Personal life and death

In July 1977, Tom Brown Jr. married Judy Duck Ford, 33. At the time Judy had a daughter Kerry, 15, and a son Paul, 11, from a previous marriage. The two had one child, Tom Brown III, together.<ref name=Vespa/> Brown later married Debbie Brown and had two children with her, Coty Tracker Brown and River Scout Brown.<ref>Tom Brown Jr., "Science and the Art of Tracking Template:Webarchive" (Berkley, 1999)</ref> Later, Brown married his third wife, Celeste Brown.<ref name="inq"/>

Brown died in Neptune, New Jersey, on August 16, 2024, at the age of 74.<ref name="nyt">Template:Cite news</ref>

Publications and media

Brown has written 18 books. His first book The Tracker, in 1978, chronicled his coming of age. Reader's Digest printed a condensed version of the story and provided information about Brown's new Tracker School. Tom Brown's books are published by Penguin Books:

The Mother Earth News website provides these articles by Tom Brown Jr.:Template:Div col

Template:Div col end

See also

References

Template:Reflist

Template:Authority control

Retrieved from "https://wiki.sarg.dev/index.php?title=Tom_Brown_Jr.&oldid=715937"